Joint fatigue, pain, and instability are common conditions of active and aging people. This is especially true with regard to hinge joints of the body, including the knee joint and the elbow joint. Such joint ailments often can be attributed to damage to, and degenerative wear in, the contact surfaces of bone ends meeting at the joint. External support in these areas of the body can help address joint fatigue, pain, and/or instability and, generally, external support in various areas of the body can serve to address many different conditions. One or more aspects of the invention provide such support. Moreover, one or more aspects of the invention even augment motion about joints and, in particular, about hinge joints.
Additionally, several embodiments of improved supports that address the foregoing concerns are disclosed in the following U.S. patent application publications, each of which is hereby incorporated herein by reference: US 2008-0065230 A1; US 2008-0039757 A1; US 2008-0039766 A1; US 2006-0030804 A1; US 2006-0030805 A1; US 2006-0030806 A1; US 2006-0026733 A1; US 2006-0026736 A1; US 2006-0070165 A1; US 2006-0070164 A1; US 2006-0026732 A1; US 2006-0030803 A1; and US 2006-0030802 A1.
Supports in accordance with embodiments of the present application represent yet further such supports that address the foregoing concerns.